
HAMAS HOSTAGE
THE Israeli government believes that one of the two Filipinos still missing following the October 7 Hamas attack on Israel is being held hostage, the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said Wednesday.
DFA Undersecretary Eduardo Jose De Vega said the information came from the Israeli side but the Philippine government could not confirm he was kidnapped.
“There are two missing Filipinos, two unaccounted for according to the Embassy,” De Vega said in a virtual press conference.
“As to whether there are hostages, we cannot affirm that although Israel believes that, one of them a male, is likely a hostage— they haven’t shown us the evidence,” he noted.
De Vega said the supposed kidnapped victim is the same person whose wife earlier confirmed that she recognized him in one of the videos circulating on social media showing a man being held by gunmen, most likely brought to Gaza.
The official confirmed that the Philippines is in talks with foreign governments but did not identify the countries.
“For the protection of the hostages, we won’t reveal exactly what we’re doing other than to confirm that we are talking to all who may be able to help us,” he said.
“We are not talking to Hamas but we are talking to governments,” he clarified.
3 PINOYS STILL IN GAZA, 136 WANT TO LEAVE LEBANON
De Vega said no Filipino has been reported hurt so far in the ongoing Israel-Hamas war in Gaza, including in southern Lebanon where hostilities between the Iran-backed Hezbollah and Israeli forces are intensifying.
He said no Filipino has been able to exit Gaza as of yet pending the opening of a humanitarian corridor to Egypt.
The three Filipinos still in Gaza City include a nun, and a father and child.
In Lebanon, 113 out of the 17,500 Filipinos there have sought for repatriation, De Vega said
Three of the 136 Filipinos in the besieged enclave are also still in Gaza City.
De Vega said the Filipino nun has decided to stay in Gaza City and that the DFA respects her decision.
The Filipino male and the child, on the other hand, were already in southern Gaza but returned to the city to check on his Palestinian father-in-law, who is staying at a hospital due to injuries.
“They are sheltered at a hospital, the same hospital where the father-in-law is staying over shrapnel wounds,” De Vega reported.
“The other Filipinos are still around various buildings in southern Gaza area so we hope that there will be decision that will allow them to cross,” he added.
De Vega said not all 136 Filipinos in Gaza wanted to be repatriated, and only 78 to 80 have expressed their intent to leave the coastal strip.
The official said this could go up but the Philippine Embassy in Cairo is ready for as many as 150, should relevant authorities allow their Palestinian spouses to pass through the border.
“Our main concern now is the Filipinos in Gaza because they’re the ones under a humanitarian crisis because of the lack of supplies and their situation is not ideal, it’s a war and they’re not even yet at the ground assault,” he said.
“Therefore, we reiterate, we join the call of the United Nations Secretary General hopefully for cessation of hostilities, for non-targeting as much as possible of civilians,” he added.
Meanwhile, De Vega said the Philippine Embassy in Beirut is still trying to ascertain the condition of about 100 Filipinos in southern Lebanon where skirmishes between Israel and Hezbollah have been ongoing.
“We’re still waiting for the final confirmation from the embassy as to how they are,” he said.
“What we know is that evacuation already began and hopefully everyone of them have been evacuated. Important thing is there’s no casualty,” he added.
The DFA had been calling on Filipinos in the entire Lebanon to return home due to rising tensions in the country as early as Oct. 20. Philippine News Agency